condemns

Hundreds of vehicles have driven through Istanbul to condemn the ‘lawless aggression’ of the US and Israel. The convoy, carrying Palestinian and Turkish flags, is calling for international accountability in light of relentless attacks on Lebanon, Iran and Gaza.

Memorial was co-winner of 2022 Peace Prize for its work in documenting human rights abuses in Russia.

The committee that awards the Nobel Peace Prize has condemned attempts by Moscow to designate the human rights group and Peace Prize laureate Memorial as an “extremist organisation”.

The chairman of the Norwegian Nobel Committee, Jorgen Watne Frydnes, said in a statement on Wednesday that it was “deeply alarmed by the Russian authorities’ latest attempts to destroy Memorial – a co-recipient of the 2022 Nobel Peace Prize – by seeking to designate [it] as an extremist organisation”.

The statement was issued as Russia’s Supreme Court is expected to examine a petition from the Ministry of Justice on Thursday to add Memorial to Russia’s list of “undesirable” entities.

The designation would ban the organisation from operating in Russia, with those affiliated with it could face up to four years in prison and fines.

Memorial has already been declared a “foreign agent”, and the Supreme Court ordered it dissolved in Russia at the end of 2021.

Frydnes stressed that if the latest petition by the Justice Ministry is upheld, “all activities of Memorial will be criminalised. Anyone taking part in, or funding, Memorial’s work – or even sharing its published materials – will risk imprisonment.”

“To designate such an organisation as extremist is an affront to the fundamental values of human dignity and freedom of expression,” he added.

The committee called “on the Russian authorities to immediately withdraw this claim and to cease all harassment of Memorial and its members”.

Memorial won the Nobel Peace Prize with the Ukrainian human rights organisation Centre for Civil Liberties and Ales Bialiatski, who has worked to promote democracy and human rights in Belarus. Memorial, established in 1987, focuses on documenting human rights abuses in Russia.

Before it was banned in Russia, Memorial formed a network of about 50 organisations across Russia and outside its borders. Some of its constituents based in Germany, France and Italy continue to operate.

Several Russian Memorial leaders have been subjected to criminal proceedings – including Oleg Orlov, who was freed in a prisoner exchange in 2024 after being imprisoned for speaking out against the Ukraine war – are now working outside Russia to continue documenting human rights abuses.

Pope Leo washed the feet of 12 priests in a Holy Thursday ritual, using the moment to urge Catholics to stand with the oppressed. His remarks come after he criticised the Trump administration on the Iran war and called for an end to the fighting.

The Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) has condemned anti-Muslim chants which were heard during the first half of Spain’s 0-0 draw with Egypt in Barcelona on Tuesday.

At half-time, a message warning fans against xenophobic remarks and singing was displayed on the screen at the RCDE Stadium with the stadium announcer also reading out a similar request.

The message was then repeated early in the second half, leading to whistles from some sections of the crowd.

“The RFEF stands against racism in football and condemns any act of violence inside stadiums,” they posted on social media.

The behaviour was also condemned by Spain coach Luis de la Fuente.

“It’s intolerable,” he said. “Violent people use football to carve out a space for themselves.

“They must be removed from society, identified, and kept as far away as possible.”

Tuesday’s game was due to be played in Qatar but was moved to the home of La Liga side Espanyol due to the war in the Middle East.

De la Fuente made 10 changes from Friday’s 3-0 friendly win over Serbia with Barcelona winger Lamine Yamal the only player to keep his place while Egypt were without injured Liverpool striker Mohamed Salah.

The result also saw Spain, one of the co-hosts of the next World Cup in 2030, lose their top place in the world rankings.

The UN has condemned the deaths of three Indonesian peacekeepers in southern Lebanon, who were killed in two separate incidents, including a vehicle explosion. They are the latest UN casualties since Israel expanded its ground invasion.